Christmas Kickoff

Friday night Rachel and I took the boys to Jordan Creek for the lighting of the Christmas tree. Luckily, it was a warm night. We got there 30 minutes early and parked. We had to walk quite a ways, but we were able to stake out a bench very close to the tree between On the Border and Joe's Crab Shack. Rachel fed the boys snacks (this bad mom forgot hers) and then Ryan and I walked almost the full lenght of the lake to find the free cookie booth. After the boys had their cookies, they ran around like crazy men in the grass next to Joe's with the other kids. I'm sure there were probably 1000's of people there, but it wasn't too crowded at our end since most of the people were at the opposite end by the bleachers. Finally, after the 30-minute Blenders concert, the started the countdown and lit the tree. It was very exciting. Then the fireworks started. They were awesome. They were almost more impressive than the 4th of July, and they lasted a really long time. At first, Ryan shook his head and said No! No!, and then he laid his head on my shoulder. But I noticed after a few minutes that he was watching them and smiling. They were really beautiful over the lake. We were right under them, which was a little scary. We decided the mall would be too crowded after them, so we went to McDonalds so the kids could play. They had so much fun going down the big pink slide. They played for about an hour. Ryan was all hot and sweaty. Then Rachel dropped us off, and I got Ryan ready for bed and he was out like a light. What a fun outing!

I've Been Tagged

Jen tagged me. Of course she tagged everyone I know, so I have no one to tag! Here's the deal:

THE RULES:1. Link to your tagger and post these rules.2. Share 7 facts about yourself: some random, some weird.3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post and list their names (linking to them).4. Let them know they've been tagged by leaving a comment at their blogs.

Here are my 7 facts:

1. I have an unusually high pain threshold. I was off pain killers 3 days after my c-section. The nurses couldn't believe my chart.

2. The most disgusting taste in the world to me is almond flavoring. It triggers my gag reflex. I despise Dutch letters.

3. I am afraid of being buried alive or being put in prison for a crime I didn't commit.

4. I am traumatized by baking pie. We had to bake one and enter the 4-H pie baking contest each year. They auctioned them off, and after 8 years of seeing other peoples' pies sell for $200 (their parents were showoffs) and mine sell for $20, I can not bear to bake a pie. Except for pumpkin at Thanksgiving. Pumpkin was not allowed in the contest - so no trauma.

5. I have mud-wrestled a pig at the Buchanan County Fair.

6. My favorite food in the world is appetizers - any kind - but best are olives and foods containing mayo or cream cheese.

7. Sometimes I drink soy sauce straight from the bottle.

8. A bonus fact - I have asymmetrical optic nerves. They don't match. Apparently this is usually a sign of gluacoma, but in my case, it just means I'm a freak.